FIDIC has added a new procurement chapter to its award-winning Nature-Positive Infrastructure Playbook to further encourage and expand global recognition of nature-positive infrastructure approaches across the engineering, construction and infrastructure sector.
The new section on procurement, will set out how client-side actors – funders, developers, government departments and agencies, and contractors – can now incorporate significant content on nature-positive infrastructure into their procurement process project briefs and scopes of work, thereby ensuring that nature is front of mind during infrastructure planning and design, rather than an afterthought.
The playbook was published in 2023 after FIDIC, the World Wildlife Fund and AECOM joined forces to develop a ‘living’ guide to expand global recognition of nature-positive infrastructure approaches for years to come. The playbook provides an insight into the global state of play and acts as a tool for supporting the implementation of nature-based solutions. As a ‘living playbook’ it will be added to and expanded as the industry progresses towards new solutions and construction techniques that are truly nature positive.
The new procurement chapter was officially launched during last week’s FIDIC Global Infrastructure Conference in Geneva, alongside additional case studies that illustrate successful implementations of nature-positive principles. The playbook provides a comprehensive framework for integrating nature-positive principles into infrastructure projects and ensures that development not only minimises environmental harm but actively contributes to ecological restoration and sustainability.
The new chapter, Developing a early project strategy and procurement strategy, makes the point that creating a nature-positive infrastructure project requires more than just implementing nature-positive solutions to improve the direct, localised effects of a development on biodiversity, climate and carbon. It also involves applying the same mindset to the value chain and a development’s broader, indirect impacts. The chapter aims to help users understand the impact of their supply chain and start to establish clear goals and objectives for active engagement with their key suppliers and service providers.
The chapter highlights that there are four key themes and messages that are needed to improve the implementation and development of nature positive infrastructure solution. These are listed below.
Regulatory drivers - Nature positivity and biodiversity net gain are increasingly being driven by regulatory requirements across many jurisdictions, with market demand further supporting the move to adopt best practice approaches throughout the lifecycle of a project.
Tap into available information - There is a wealth of guidance, standards, and frameworks available to organisations that can encourage and help inform stakeholders in implementing nature-positive solutions in infrastructure development.
Engage early - It is essential to engage with a range of both internal and external stakeholders when implementing nature-positive solutions into the early lifecycle stages of infrastructure development.
Procurement strategy - Developing an early project and procurement strategy is key to ensuring the effective implementation of nature-positive solutions.
The new chapter in the playbook also guides the user through a step-by-step process to help and enable industry professionals to establish sustainability as a procurement focus. It advocates early stakeholder involvement, robust business case planning, supply chain mapping, careful supplier selection and ensuring that nature-positive requirements are incorporated into the contract terms agreed with project partners and suppliers.
